Life Without You
by Renabella23
Summary: She lost someone that fateful day and now, one year later, she's still having a hard time getting over it. What will she do? And who will help her? They are mortal, not demigods. Rated T just in case.
1. Chapter 1

The wind was so cold that it sent shivers down my spine. I wrapped my coat tighter around me. My hair flew into my tear-stained face and I raised a shaking hand to brush it back. I stared out at the water and choppy waves. Being here pained me. I felt a flashback coming on:

We were at the beach and I was trying to convince her to come into the water with me. The waves were calm that day and everything was peaceful.

"Please come! You have to get over your fear!" I begged.

"I really don't want to!" she replied, nervously.

"Please! I won't let anything happen to you," I promised.

"Well… okay, but not for long," she consented.

We walked into the clear water, me holding her hand and her trembling anxiously. We wade in until the water reached to our knees. I glanced at her and she smiled weakly back at me.

"See, it's not so bad," I said.

"I guess not," she admitted.

We dove in and swam for a while. I kept close to her to make sure she was fine. A little later, I told her I was going to get something to drink and I'd be back in five minutes. She said she would stay in the water and wait for me. I was glad that she seemed to like it so much, glad that she had finally overcome her fear.

I was coming back from getting a drink when I noticed that the water had gotten rough. I looked to the place where I had left her. She wasn't there so I looked farther out and I found her. I beamed at her courage. I was so happy that she was able to swim out that far. But then I realized that something wasn't right with the way she was moving. I moved closer and saw that she was thrashing. Her head ducked under the water but she came back up only to go under again. She was drowning! I quickly dove into the water and hurriedly swam out to save her. After what seemed like forever, I grabbed hold of her wrist. I pulled her in towards me and began swimming back. Suddenly, she was yanked out of my grasp by a huge wave that had come up behind us. I desperately tried to grab her back but found myself grabbing only at thin air. I searched and searched for her after that but the wave had taken her too far out to sea. I panicked. I didn't know what to do. A lifeguard came and took me back to shore. I was hysterical and in shock. What had just happened? They kept telling me I did my best to save her but it didn't help my state one bit. She was gone and it was my fault. I remembered my promise to her. It echoed in my head: I won't let anything happen to you. I broke that promise. Something happened to her, something that I will regret always and forever. That was the day I lost my best friend, Thalia Grace.

The flashback ended. I touched my face to find fresh tears on it. My body racked with sobs. I wish that day had never happened. I wish I could change it. But I know I can't.

"Annabeth?" someone touched me lightly on my shoulder.

I looked up to see that it was Percy. When he saw that my face was streaked with tears, he pulled me up and wrapped me in his arms comfortingly. His hug was so warm. Another sob escaped my lips. He stroked my back and told me it was okay. We broke away from each other and he took my hand and led me away from the beach. We got into his car and drove off. My tears were still falling freely.

"Where are we going?" I asked him.

"To my place. We're gonna cheer you up," he answered.

"Okay," I muttered.

He looked back at me and I could see the sadness evident in his beautiful sea-green eyes.

"You miss her too, don't you?" I said into the silence.

"How could I not? She was like my sister…" he uttered.

"She was like my sister too."

And we left it at that. Nobody really wanted to talk about it. Everyone said that it wasn't my fault for what had happened to her, but how can they be right? If I hadn't convinced her to go into the water then she never would have drowned. She would have had the chance at a great life. But she didn't. And I have only myself to blame.

**Please review! Thanks for reading :) I'll update asap**.


	2. Chapter 2

I fell asleep on the drive to Percy's house. I was dreaming of electric blue eyes and spiky black hair, dreaming of the great times I had had with the owner of that hair and those eyes. Then the dream turned to a nightmare. We were back at the beach. I was watching that girl struggling for her life in the water. I was reliving that despair-filled day. That cruel day I lost her. I jolted up, shaking uncontrollably, my face wet with sorrowful tears. My hair was matted to my forehead with sweat. Percy parked the car and hopped out as swift as an eagle. He came into the backseat with me and engulfed me in a hug. We sat there saying nothing, the only sound coming from my weeping. Tears trickled down my face and fell on his shirt but he didn't seem to care. He just kept me there in his arms. I was the one to pull away first. My tears had dried but they were still there, behind my eyes, threatening to overflow again.

"Annabeth, it's going to be alright. She's in a better place now," Percy tried to console me.

"It was all my fault. She would be here now if it wasn't for me. She would have grown up to get married and have kids. But I ruined all of that," I said, almost inaudibly.

But he still heard.

"It wasn't your fault. You did all that you could. Don't put yourself through hell because of what you couldn't prevent, Annabeth," he whispered to me.

I looked up at him and saw that tears were falling from his eyes. I wiped them off his face with my thumb. He opened the car door and helped me out and we made our way into his house. We went up to his room and I lay on his bed. He lay down beside me and I curled up in his arms and fell asleep once more, after exhausting myself with crying. This time, I dreamt of nothing.

~line break~

I awoke to sunlight streaming through the window the next morning. Someone stirred beside me and I looked over to see that it was Percy. Why was Percy sleeping next to me? And why was I in his room? Then all the events of the day before came rushing back to me. Tears instantly formed in my eyes but I held them back, trying to fight the urge to cry. I rose from the bed and went into the bathroom to wash my face. As I looked at myself in the mirror, I saw that my expression was morose. There was nothing cheerful about me; no smile, no shining eyes. I just appeared downcast. Is this really me? Sure I didn't trust people easily and I was a very careful type of person but I always had a smile to offer. Now if I ever smiled, it was somewhat forced. This is really me, one year after that fateful day, and I still haven't gotten over her death. I know that she's in a better place now but I can't help but wish she was here with me. Sometimes, I question myself on if it actually was my fault or if I'm just making myself believe that because I can't deal with the fact that she's gone forever. But I always come up with the same conclusion in the end: if I hadn't made her go in the water, she never would've drowned.

I walked out of the bathroom to find Percy sitting on his bed, wide awake. I came to sit next to him and he gave me a kiss on my cheek.

"Good morning, sleepy head," I managed to say.

"Good morning, princess," he replied.

"Don't call me that," I pouted.

"Okay, Wise Girl," he gave in.

"Thanks, Seaweed Brain."

It looked as if I was holding up pretty well. But I needed to ask him. He was the only one I trusted to give me the truth.

"Percy, how was it not my fault that T-Thalia drowned?" I still had trouble saying her name.

"Annabeth... it wasn't your fault and it never will be. If you hadn't gotten her to swim, she never would have faced her fear. You couldn't have stopped the water from becoming rough nor could you have held that wave back. You did the only thing you could do for her. You swam out there and tried to save her."

"But I promised I wouldn't let anything happen to her," I countered.

"And you put all your strength and courage into keeping that promise. She wouldn't have wanted you to drive yourself crazy over this, Annabeth. You of all people should know that. It's time to let go, time to forgive yourself. Even if you think you could've saved her, maybe this is just the way it was meant to be."

"I'll try, I promise." I told him, knowing that this was a promise I wouldn't break.

I would keep this promise no matter what. I owed it to myself and to Percy. I hugged him while I whispered "thank-you" in his ear. I knew that I could always count on him. I knew that he would always be there for me, just like I tried to be for Thalia. It was finally time to forget.

**Review! No flames please. (::) cookie for all of you. And thanks so much to trinigyal123 for being the bestest friend ever! Love you Miki :) Thank you CrazyPeanutAttack for the compliment :)**


	3. Chapter 3

Percy POV:

Annabeth smiled softly at me. I could still see the flecks of pain in her eyes but there was a new light in them now; a hopeful light. I could tell she was ready to move on after a year of hurting and wishing desperately that she could have her best friend back by her side. When Thalia had...left us, we were all distraught. But Annabeth had taken it the hardest. I didn't blame her. Thalia was with her from the start. She was the one who was always there to help her. When Luke died, Annabeth cried on Thalia's shoulder and Thalia on Annabeth's. They'd been through everything together and then Annabeth lost her, just like she lost Luke. It was too much for her. She broke down completely after that day and nothing and no one could console her. But I stuck by her and I vowed that I wouldn't give up on bringing her out of that tunnel of despair. And I succeeded. She was finally going to try to forget the past and celebrate the present and anticipate the future. I beamed at her and took her in my arms, running my fingers through her beautiful golden hair that shined like sunlight. To me, that hair was a representation of the golden heart she had on the inside. Annabeth meant the world to me and I would do anything to make her happy. To see that glowing smile on her face was enough to make my heart skip beats. She lights up my world like nobody else. She tilted her head up towards me and kissed me lightly. I returned it lovingly. I felt her smile against my lips and when we broke apart, tears were sliding down her face. But this time, they were tears of joy. She wiped them off with the back of her hand and stood up.

"Can you take me home, Seaweed Brain? I need to get cleaned up," she said.

"What's the magic word?" I replied, jokingly, knowing it would aggravate her.

"Please?" she answered.

My eyes widened in shock and I put my hand to her forehead, pretending to check her temperature.

"Did Annabeth Chase just say 'please'? I questioned in mock surprise.

She swatted my hand away and laughed playfully. I closed my eyes at the sound of it. It had been a while since I had heard that tinkling laughter, like wind chimes being blown by a passing breeze.

"Just take me home," Annabeth's voice broke me out of my reverie.

"Ok come on," I hopped off the bed and picked her up bridal style.

"Percy! Put me down!" she gasped in between giggles.

"Nope," I responded simply.

This was the most cheerful I've seen her in a year and I'm celebrating. And there's also the fact that I just want to annoy her. I grinned down at her and saw that she was looking at me. I ducked my head for a kiss but she turned her head.

"Nu-uh. Not until I get home and clean myself," she scolded.

"Well then it looks like you're gonna get home pretty quickly," I told her, smirking. We reached my car and I gently set her on the ground and opened the door for her. She got in but not before flicking me on my forehead. I pouted at her and she smirked. I got into the car and we drove off, heading for Annabeth's house. This day may have started off sorrowful but the dark clouds are definitely starting to lift to reveal a bright and wonderful sun.

Well there's the third chapter :) hope you liked it! please review and if you do, tell me if you noticed lyrics somewhere in this chapter ;) virtual cookie to all of you (::) :D bye for now! 5 reviews and i'll post the next chapter!


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